


And Then I Saw You

by orphan_account



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Dark Academia, F/F, Forbidden Love, Mutual Pining, Pining, slowburn, this is literally just for me lol if u find this dont read xoxox
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:46:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27363715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: WOMENi love women and poetry and pining
Comments: 1





	1. catching her eye

Whilst Bea stood still, alone in the corner, as she always did at functions such as these, she scanned the crowd. The space was filled with unfamiliar faces, all painted like fine bone china, not an eyebrow hair out of place, nor a cupid's bow untied, cheeks rosy and hair slicked back. Everyone stood politely, rocking from side to side to the classical music playing softly from the stage, or was it jazz?

Bea watched it all unfold, an elegant hand waving down a waiter floating between the couples and groups on the marble tiles and grasping onto the neck of the flute, one could swear to hear the clink of the golden rings against the glass. The galas and dinners, parties and gatherings unfolded as they always did. Under the arched roof of the reestablished church. The intricacies of the ceilings glowed warm and mellow, ecstatic to be observed once again in such heavenly light. The arches of the roof barrelled down into cascading jade coloured curtains, detailed with embroidered corners and ends, as finely detailed with religious motifs as the rest of the ballroom was.

Each curtain fell from 10 feet above, parting in an upside-down V to reveal a pattern of archways, glass bay doors pushed out to invite in the cool autumn atmosphere in, as well as to waft the smoke of twin cigarettes, burning at the lips of strangers who stand, huddled together near the staghorn mounted on the heavy brick exterior.

Bea could only just see them, one sat on the low banister now, his head swung back in a fit of laughter, his eyes squinted open to see the neighbouring forest upside down. The other leaned close to the wall. his shoulderblades and tailbone pressed through his three-piece-suit, the heels of his likely kindly pampered feet held his weight.

_I_ _wonder what they're talking about._

Bea opened her small black purse and rolled a thin cigarette between her own fingers.

 _I could go out there_. _Ask for a light._ Bea didn't smoke, she never liked the taste, or the smell, or the feeling it gave, it felt as if she had something to prove. Bea did usually have something to prove, but she would not find success through bringing this between her lips. She still kept loose cigarettes though, in her bag, for no real reason, there wasn't a metaphor, nor a sad story. She held it gently between her thumb and pointer finger, in a vague trance.

she rose her eyes to see the pair again, maybe to psyche herself up, or talk herself out of approaching the young men. Her eyes did not quite reach.

A woman, perhaps the age of Bea herself stood quietly in Bea's line of sight. She wore a dress, silver in colour, though it could be blue. It shimmered and changed, like a deep secluded lake in the summer, ripples and reflections of the clear sky and bold golden sun dancing over the vessel, catching the eyes of unruly strangers. Bea wasn't sure if it was the attire, or the very girl herself, seemed to have a glowing exterior. Rosy and mellow, her face round and bold, shining not as if the sun were within her but rather each thing she touched, whether it be running a pinky along a table or cupping someones shoulder with her delicate hand, an imprint was left, a memory of the smile she wore, the perfume that tickled her wrist, the softness of her voice. Bea watched as she walked forwards, twinkling with the chandelier, each step and the small movements that came with it a dance, choreographed by Aphrodite herself. 

“Hey stranger”

Bea parted her lips, enchanted by her very presence but no words were spoken, just yet, at least.

“I hope you remember me or else this might be awkward” Kasey stifled a laugh, and bounced on the balls of her feet, eager to elicit a response from the shorter girl that stood across from her. She laughed again, showing her teeth this time, this reaction seemingly relaxed Bea as her posture changed nearly completely. Un-furrowing her thick eyebrows and rolling her shoulders back until she stood just as tall as Kasey herself. she stood without regalness, an energy that quite obviously plagued the room. both Bea and her elder brother had a casual coolness to their stance, Kasey didn’t know if it was something in their eye or how they adjusted their clothing in the mirror. that something was rare and a thing to be treasured she had always thought.

“simons friend,” Bea said cooly, her squinted eyes unfazed and unapologetically scanning Kaseys face.

“yup! he’s a great guy that brother of yours”

“he sure is”

“he talks about you a lot”

“is he kind?”

“yes of course!” she paused to smile. a jarring thing, she forced her eyes shut and drew her already thin lips into a thinner grin, “he’s not one to gossip”

Beas face remained, unknowable. She asked again, rearranging the words. “is he kind to you?”

Kaseys eyes widened, her poker face clearly the lesser of the two. she smiled again, “he’s really sweet you know, a really good guy.”

the air between them was quiet for a minute, pregnant with unspoken words and a matching sense of discomfort. a roar of distant laughter was nearly constant and paired with the tinkling of champagne flutes and the never-ending melodious loop; a result of the musicians that were positioned pretentiously on the stage.

“what was your name again?”

“bea”

“gosh of course! bea. bea.” kasey tried the name out a few times, rolling the word in her mouth, “be-yuhh” she said again and again as if she were reciting some sort of prayer. Bea didn’t know what to do.

“Bea” kasey said finally, looking forward to meet the owners eyes. a smile curled across her face, the pointed facade loosened its grip as beas eyes darted away in search of her composure.

she took in a quick breath, as if to speak but she didn’t.Once again they stood there within the vibrating room, watching an absent hand tug on the corner of the sideboard they stood next to or the column of the others neck, moving as she swallowed. Kasey grabbed two champagne flutes off a passing waiters mirrored tray, moving to pass one to Bea but then hovering for a quick moment, her mouth ajar. Kasey didn’t know exactly how to approach this, she was familiar with Beas i _ssues_ or, Simons disjointed retelling of them over a 6 month period.

“Say what you want to say” Bea finally spoke, watching Kaseys every move intently, seeing the worry that plagued her brow the minute she realised that maybe champagne was not a wise choice. “Can you drink? Or should you?” Her voice was mild, it did not waver, nor did she stumble on her words.

“I can. Sometimes I do.” Bea whispered, matching Kaseys energy. “But I won’t, not here, at least.” she turned her head to the left, perhaps gesturing with the tip of her chin and upturned nose, at the people who surrounded them. Jovial and lazy, pumped full of bubbles and tiny green olives. some stumbled to find a chair, whilst others gripped onto their partners or nearby furniture. Beas darkened demeanour clearly didn't approve of this, whatever _this_ was. Public intoxication? public displays of affection? Kasey was not one to think deeply on trivial interactions such as this, especially at a gala. She supposed that Bea was the exact opposite, in that all she did was watch and think and judge and then do it all again. _What a funny girl this is._ Kasey did not like to turn down a challenge, though. She wondered how far she could go, how much she could push until the smudgy face of Bea finally broke, or maybe, let her in.

Kasey suppressed a smile. “Simon says you speak in riddles sometimes”

“That wasn’t a riddle”

“No I suppose not. Just, like a poem nearly”

“I don’t like to lie”

“Neither do I”

Bea paused, rearranged the words in her mouth, “I don’t like to dance around a topic”

Kasey pushed. “Simon says you were in rehab”

“I was in the hospital”

“For overdosing”

“No”

“For hurting yourself”

Again, bea stopped. She primarily, was taken aback by the boldness of her challenger but was not afraid of where the conversation may lead. She had never run from the truth, if someone had asked her what had happened she would tell them, if someone had asked her who was driving she would tell them. But people rarely did. Sometimes, even after so much time had passed, it hurt to think of, or just to write. The truth was pointed and unforgiving and vocalising this was far easier to her therapist or the ghosts in her room.

"why?" Bea asked, "what did _Simon_ say?" the way she spoke her brother's name was dirty as if she were spitting an insult at a worthy receiver.

Kasey placed the glasses on the sideboard next to them, between the antiques and bouquets. She hoped the condensation wouldn’t leave rings on the wood. Lord knows how old the furniture was.

“Car accident” Bea said, unprovoked.

“Were you driving?”

Bea didn’t respond.

“So that’s a yes then”

“I didn’t say that.”

“No, but still”

Bea stayed quiet.

“You brought it up”

They both swallowed, unsure of what was to happen next, both understanding that a conversation between two acquaintances doesn’t typically turn out this way, or rather, shouldn’t. The jarring bluntness that bea had picked up over years of going unseen by her mother and father, met with the unapologetic brashness that Kasey carried with every word she spoke. For a shining moment there was an energy that radiated between them. Something unknowable and invisible, a string which had wrapped itself around Kaseys pinkie and then knotted around Beas. Perhaps the string is what pulled them together that evening, a whisper of a god or goddess tugging at the middle, drawing them closer until they had no choice but to lock eyes and open their lips. The pair studied each other's faces. Not sure exactly what they should see, but regardless found comfort in watching the other watching them.

10 sharp points found themselves dug into Beas shoulders.She turned to face a sour scowl, pursed dark cherry lips, just as sour as the expression she wore. The woman was robed in a gown one would assume was something silken, just as or more expensive as everyone else attire in the ballroom. Her ears sagged supporting the dark teardrop gems that nipped at the woman neck, silently caressing the matching necklace that spread across her sun-speckled décolletage.

“Mum,” Bea said, her voice louder than Kasey had ever heard her speak, a tone that she couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t a fearful word, and it certainly lacked the respect that Beas mother had hoped for.

The rich pointed nails that kneaded her daughters shoulders retracted and instead grasped them tightly, perhaps in an attempt to show affection through physical touch. Bea tightened at this action and attempted to wiggle out of her mothers grasp, yet to no prevail.

“Beatrice, my darling I hope you have been finding the night entertaining,” She said, not acknowledging Kasey standing almost next to the pair of Romano’s. “Your skills of avoiding interactions surely are coming in handy. Your father has been speaking with potential clients all night you know, and he was so very ecstatic to show off the woman you have become, yet here you stand in the corner like a sweet little mouse, or rat rather” She chuckled at her words. Kasey drew her face into a tight-lipped smile, yet Bea remained unchanged. She was familiar with her mother's ways, one would hope she would be after 20 years of life, though thankfully she had not spent each of those tireless years by Andrea Romanos side.

"You best be on your most polite behaviour dear Beatrice."

"I always am, Mother"

Andrea rolled her eyes and gave her daughter a lazy grin.

"Oh Beatrice" she said cupping her chin. They stared at each other for a short but unsteady moment, quite opposite to the gaze Bea and Kasey had exchanged. Andrea was not sure how to approach her daughter kindly in that moment, so she did not speak, she instead chose to purse her lips and say not a word more. She turned on her heel to head back into the sea of potential clients but not before picking up the champagne left resting on the sideboard. a trail of smoky perfume was left in her wake, this being the only indicator that she had been there at all, the brief moment she interacted with bea seemingly a vision from another, purgatorial realm.

Bea was left standing, Kasey opposite her, she spied a dazed look in her eyes. 

"well hello to you too Mrs Romano!" Kasey said jokingly hoping to lightened the mood

Bea offered her a goofy smile and raised her eyebrows in discontent. She wasn't quite sure what to say

so she said nothing.

"cigarette?"


	2. The glowing ember of a shared cigarette

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> realised i will not be able to write conflict lmaooo how am I supposed to do this book if I can't literally write a book pls

Kasey spoke again, her voice clearer this time, "Cigarette?"  
"sure. Sure. Yeah" Bea found a small bead of nervousness within herself, "do you have a light?"

  
"no lighter, only these,” Kasey fished in the crochet purse she held and drew out a book of matches. She brought them up to her face, a flash of a red graphic on shiny card, “Matches should work I hope"  
"they usually do the trick."  
"ha..ha yea I'm not sure why they wouldn't"

  
She reached out her hand, arm outstretched and revealed a tattoo on the outskirts of the crease in her arm. the black ink was difficult to see, and Bea didn't want to stare at the marked skin for too long. She took the book of matches from Kasey's polite grasp and held it in her own fingers, flipping the thin folded cardboard between them. Kasey, the taller of the two took the first stride forward through the room, a hunched Bea tailing loosely behind, trying to match the speed of the woman in front of her had taken. It wasn’t long until the pair reached the balcony that Bea, only moments before was admiring from her corner. She turned back to look at it, the sideboard and the chase lounge that sat quietly, beckoning her to return, to push up against the corner of the furniture, her frame fits perfectly between the two, she has found herself between them many a times. She often stood like an ornate lamp, quietly glowering in a dimply lit corner of the massive space, watching a party unfold. or sat legs crossed and eyes down, fiddling with the hem of her skirt or a ring on her finger. Instead, the cool air of the evening atmosphere hit her face, her short hair wrapping itself under her sharp jaw. Bea looked up at the star sprinkled sky, and then back at the glowing face next to her.

  
“here, hold this” Bea said, handing a long cigarette to Kasey. Taking it elegantly between the tips of the fingers on her left hand, whilst she leaned on the banister with her right. The stone railing was low, as the drop to the grassy field below was less than four-feet. Her hip relaxed on the banister, the metallic fabric of her dress pressing against the aged stone, shifting slightly in the faded light as she moved. Bea hoped the moss and lichen that dotted the balcony would not stain it.

  
The book of matches was small, as most were, the graphic on the front was a sheepish lobster surrounded by creamy white and small text reading: LOBSTER GROVE in blue block letters, followed by a phone number and address. Lobster Grove was somewhere in Cornwall. Bea wondered if Kasey had ever been there, or she found the red headed matchsticks strewn abandoned on a kitchen counter somewhere.

  
She struck the head firmly. Nothing. Again, Nothing. Once more, a delayed fizz sounded and a white hot flame erupted from the action. With no words exchanged, Kasey brought the cigarette up to her lips, wet from her tongue tracing along them as she watched the short haired girl fiddle with the flame. Bea felt wrong for looking at her lips, but she wasn’t sure if she could help it. Shaking the flame out as it crept downwards to her fingers, a stream of smoke twisted and rolled through the atmosphere. Catching the wind and folding back over itself, creating ripples in the air. The ribbon above was met with a secondary one, pushed out of Kasey’s nostrils as she sucked in the first taste of smoke to the back of her throat. She passed the lit cigarette to Bea, who grasped it tenderly and placed it between her lips. Before inhaling, she noticed, the taste of honey and maybe cinnamon on the paper where Kasey’s lips had touched. _Where Kasey’s lips had touched._ Drawing in a breath she held on to this thought, of the woman who was positioned so close to herself. A few centimetres closer and their bodies would be as close a lovers exchanging quiet words after a long walk on the beach or a shared bottle of red wine.

The cigarette smoke filled the inside of her mouth, lapping against the enamel of her teeth. Bea banished it from her vessel, her lips formed a tight “o” and blew smoke past the balcony and into the atmosphere below. She couldn’t help but stifle a cough, the remnants of the smoke catching in her throat, which mad Kasey grin softly at her. There was no judgment in her eyes, it didn’t come from a place of malice, just a sweet, smile. Bea blushed.

  
“I haven’t in a little while, sorry” She said awkwardly, passing the cigarette back to Kasey.

  
“why would you apologise”

  
“I’m not quite sure”

  
Kasey swallowed before talking again, “this was in your purse, though”

  
“I suppose I keep them just in case” Bea didn’t meet her eyes

  
“just in case someone wants one?”

  
“just in case…I’m not sure really. They’re useful as an excuse to talk to someone, or to not talk to someone, you know. Ask for a light or say you need to smoke and you can leave a conversation you’re not fond of.”

  
“that’s quite smart Bea”

  
She said my name again. In that way that she did before. Bee-yuh. She grinned at that. A toothy thing, bold and unfaltering. She reached her hand out to grab the cigarette from Kasey’s hand.  
“you don’t have to you know”

  
“no its ok. It’s not bad when it’s with someone” Bea stopped herself from saying like you. The obvious catch in her words piqued Kasey’s interest.  
“someone who?”

  
“who is kind” She said the first word she could think of. It was ok.  
“Kind?”

  
“You’re kind.”

  
“I don’t know about that one”

  
“well you’re not rude”

  
Kasey looked into the night with a quizzical look on her brow, she pondered what had just been said. She didn’t consider herself kind in the same way a person wakes up in the morning or goes to sleep at night; it was just something that she did, it’s just who she had always been. Kind.

  
“I suppose not” she finally said, passing on the cigarette. Her finger brushed over the cool skin of Bea’s hand. It was only for a brief second, but the feeling of Beas body on her own, even just a patch as small as it was, lingered on her skin, her fingertips electric with the memory of her contact. Of Bea’s skin on her own.

  
As the night crept on the thought didn’t leave Kasey’s mind. The cigarette was smoked to a butt, and another one, and another one. Bea had only carried two in her purse, but managed to convince a man with a skinny red tie and a mop of black hair that they really did deserve a third. It didn’t take much, but Kasey noticed the sullen exterior Bea wore was just that, a thin layer that surrounded her person; a layer of malice and dirt. Squinted eyes and pouted lips on the mask that was shown to anyone who dare approached her. Kasey spied this when she walked up to her, positioned between the chaise lounge and side board. and the first words spoken quickly into a conversation, which was followed by another and another. The façade tumbled far easier than expected. She wondered if the initial conversation that they had, had not gone the way it did would she still be here, sitting by Beas side on the concrete floor of the balcony, a mellow smile and a lasting giggle shared by them both as the morning sun seeping through the forest behind them.

  
Kasey looked down at her fingers, gently pressing her thumb on the tips where Bea had brushed across. She swallowed and looked across at her. Their bodies touched as they sat low to the floor. Shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip. Beas eyelids had grown heavy, a smile still painted across her pale face, but conversation lead to dancing lead to laughter and to more conversation, she was fading into slumber Kasey didn’t care to shake her from. A ringlet of deep brown hair fell across Bea’s face, gently brushing the tip of her pointed nose in the dawn breeze. It wouldn’t take much to tuck it behind her ear. To touch a small part of this girl, caress her temple, perhaps her jawline with as much delicacy as a fairy. Kasey was sure she wouldn’t notice if she dared (and Kasey always did dare, she was the adventurous type after all). The strand fell from the front part of Bea’s hair line, a curl that had sat at her cheekbone all evening, swaying in time with the movements of her face as she spoke or laughed.

  
Simon was right, she really did speak in riddles, her words were like poetry, melody-less lyrics. Kasey wondered why she stood alone.

  
 _That mask she wears. Maybe. Maybe something else. It didn’t take long to begin a good conversation, though_. She supposed no one had really tried.

  
Kasey grasped the strand, lingering slightly as she held it so gently in her fingers. She looked at Beas face; sharp and unquestionably bright, like the points of a star, or the room filling glow of an intricate glass chandelier. Kasey didn’t think she could take her features like this, she felt as if she was stealing a glance, a Montague pining over a Capulet, or the prince kissing sleeping beauty. She would have to wait to take in Bea’s face all at once. Someday soon perhaps. Kasey caressed the rim of the other girl’s ear cartilage while she tucked the hair behind it at last.  
She followed Beas example and closed her own eyes as well, leaning back onto the banisters railing.

  
_Someday soon_ , she thought.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> been a while... wrote this ages ago & ao3 takes away the italicizing so i gotta add it in manually.. may have forgotten some parts

“Putain!”

Kasey was jolted awake, her foot kicked by a passing French waiter in a rush scowled down at her. He stormed off, red faced and shiny still watching her. She couldn’t tell if the look of distaste was directed at her or her icy feet that were flat across the concrete thoroughfare. Kasey gave the man a plastered smile and attempted to push herself up. She felt a small bit embarrassed. Although it had been a long night, passing out after 3 flutes of champagne was not her typical style, though there was no point dwelling on it.

she laced her fingers together and stretched them above herself, making no effort to stifle the yawn that signaled the stiffness of her slumber. no one else seemed to walk down the balcony, in fact it seemed strange that a staff member from last night’s very tame gala was still around at, Kasey checked her watch, 7:27 on a Saturday morning. she didn’t think too much of it, as soon as her eyes fluttered back open to face the greying sky, thick with rain clouds, already it had started to rain. droplets quick with conviction seemingly desperate to soak into the grass below. the moment rain brushed her cheek she was quick to jump up, wobbling to her feet in the soft sued peachy coloured heels that were encrusted to her feet with a net of buckles and zippers.

She reached the sheltered archway of the bay door. Standing proudly as the portal between the stormy exterior and the constantly buzzing ballroom. The energy was different, hours after the event had ended yet retained a feeling Kasey couldn’t quite place. Her eyes scanned the high ceilings and deep crevices in the walls. Windows stood, stained and opulent, if sun were to trickle through them the space in which Kasey stood would likely be veiled under rich greens and maroons, a projection of a melancholy window scene made by an artist many moons ago. Picking up her walking pace, Kasey hobbled across the parquet floor, her heels making an uneven “clack” sound on the polished wood. The position which she had slept in caused the girls right leg to fall partially asleep, making it increasingly difficult to walk naturally and quietly through the empty space. Apart from herself and the waiter, Kasey was seemingly alone. The rain was amplified on the slate roof, echoing through the arches, and harmonizing with the small atmospheric whispers of the ancient walls. Kasey stopped, nearly in the center of the ball room, she inhaled, quickly and brightly, the rush of cool morning air acted as a much-needed stimulant.

The bags under her eyes did not fade, nor the ache in her neck and calves, yet she was awake; in the truest sense. Surrounded by air that was thick with magic, memories not of just gallery opening fundraisers, but baptisms, weddings, festivals and celebrations of life dating back hundreds of years, all leading up to this very moment. Lives both old and new, as vibrant and real as her own passing through Kasey’s vessel as she closed her eyes. Drawing in another breath, deeper than the last, she could swear the taste of someone else was here, a thousand other exhales, synchronized with her own.

_Did they think about me in that moment?_

She pictured a woman, robed in velvet, her thick braided hair pinned tightly back. Her face a painting, tears heavy at the rim of her deep honey eyes. Kasey stands in the same place as this woman, a new mother in fact, her infant cradled close to her heart. It doesn’t stir, the layers of snow white linen it’s wrapped in are the same sheets that their mother sleeps under. Kasey wonders; does the mother know in thirty years her son will stand here too, his eyes as big as saucers, just as they were when they first opened. His hair thick and impossibly dark, just as his mother’s was. His wife stands close, lilacs and daisies woven into her own. She smiles at the man, moon faced and beaming, her freckles looked like flecks of gold in the sun. One day the children she bares will stand here, as her ancestor did.

Kasey did not plan to have children. She thought of the characters who will exist whilst she decomposes in the earth only a few feet away from the balcony that she awoke from. The moments she took to think, the rain only got heavier, and the lighting dimmed to a lazy grey.

The lamps dotted throughout had been left on since the evening and pooled their surrounding surfaces in a rich orange glow. Kasey’s’ round face was illuminated in this light, it ran down her nose and traced her moving form, following as she reached the foyer. The slanted arch of the church building cascaded down on either side, meaning the ceiling of the room dipped incredibly low, the grandness of the main room starkly contrasting to this much smaller, carpeted space.

Kasey scanned the room. Empty, though a considerable number of coats and hats left dormant in the coat check. Just to the left of the exit was a door, a passage to a landscape of coat hangers and abandoned purses, patiently waiting to be claimed. Kasey thought it rude to leave so many lavish textiles ownerless so she tried the doorknob. The dark oak door put up no fight and swung inwards, bringing the contents of the large closet in full view. The room was dark as she stepped inside, but light enough to see the outline of fur, leather, and cord jackets and their companion scarves or hats. The rain was much quieter in there, stifled by the padding on the walls and the insulation stuffed above the low ceiling (is what Kasey deduced, at least).

She checked her watch, 7:39. _I should hurry up. At this rate I won’t make it_.

She flicked her wrist up again, reading the clock face. 7:40. She knew the rain had only just begun outside, and chose out a heavy brown leather jacket. It reached just below her knees, and the worn down fuzzy lining swayed with her movements, lapping at her bare thighs. A hat, of similar style hung above where Kasey had grabbed the jacket which now sat comfortably around her shoulders. With no real time to inspect her appearance, she pulled the bucket hat over her hair and reached for the brass door handle. The outside world was just as windy and unpleasant as Kasey had expected. The borrowed coat was useful, but not incredibly effective to keep her vessel from getting christened by the elements. The footpath that lead from the church was lined with great spruce trees, each trees base was embellished with a healthy patch of small white flowers.

A quick glance at them could fool an untrained eye into thinking that the first snowfall of the autumn had graced the earth, though mother nature was not known to be hasty with these things.

Snow was never rare in Valshire, but instead often waited until the last possible moment until the grey sky turns white, as do the rolling hills and inky forest surrounding them. Blanketing the landscape in thick snow, for seemingly months, sleet and ice mapping the roads well into spring. Kasey was thankful it didn’t snow in autumn, as horrid as the rain was, walking through the CBD in high heels through ice-cold slush seemed a far worse challenge.

A soft rhythmic buzzing pushed at the palm of Kasey’s hand. Her phone had been tucked away the majority of the night yet was still low on battery, she noticed, bringing it up to her rain drop patterned cheek. “

Morning Simon, how are you feeling?” Kasey answered the call as brightly as she could, these being the first words uttered of the new day.

“Good morning my love”

Kasey chuckled awkwardly in response.

He was difficult to hear, as she was maintaining her fast walking speed, and the wind whistling in her ears only made his low, raspy voice even lower and raspier.

“What did you get up to?”

“Not much my sweet. I didn’t want to miss the gala you know, I felt guilty the whole night truly.”

“Please don’t worry Simon, I’m serious. Its ok. Your family didn’t fall apart because you didn’t end up at one fundraiser thing.”

Simon said something in response that was lost to the wind.

“Your coming to dinner tonight I hope.” Simons voice was far louder and sterner than only moments before. Kasey cleared her throat before responding.

“umm, yes if that’s still on the table. I’m excited to finally meet everybody”

“Of course it’s on the table, don’t be daft” His voice carried that same tone.

“I’ll pick you up from where? Work?”

“No, home would be better, I want to get changed first”

“Work clothes are fine, I’ll pick you up from the gallery, alright?”

Kasey pondered telling him that she hadn’t gone home after the gala, but quickly decided against it. She had the odd blouse or two stowed away in the office at her work, she hoped they would meet Simons expectations.

“Ok sweetheart, that’s fine then.” He didn’t react.

“Where are you?” “I’m out right now, works only a minute or so away.”

She checked her watch, sandwiching her mobile between her shoulder and ear. 8:04. Late.

“stay safe, ok?” Simon hung up before she could respond, though her pace quickened, the gallery was in sight. The rain hadn’t subsided at all but Kasey felt a small bit warmer than she did before.

She hoped the dinner would go smoothly.

_Bea will be there too,_ she thought.


End file.
